The Positive Impact of Technology on Teaching and Learning:
Why Technology is Important in Today’s Classrooms
The endeavor to integrate technology into the classroom is not a new one; to the contrary, educational technology integration is a movement with a rich past. Beginning in the 1920s with the video augmentation of classroom materials, educators have been integrating technology into the classroom for the better part of the 20th century and each chapter of our history has had its own unique impact on educational technology. Today computers, internet access, and other technology tools have become commonplace in schools across the United States (U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology, 2004) and the positive benefits of technology integration is being revealed. Instructors over have long felt that the classroom experience of their students is enhanced with technology; history and research have shown us that this is true. The integration of technology into teaching and learning can have a direct positive impact on both teaching (Fouts, 2000) and learning (CEO Forum on Education and Technology, 2001; Prensky, 2008) which benifits both the student and the instructor.
The integration of technology into the classroom does not simply mean placing a computer into the room, as the mere presence of technology does not impact everyday teaching and learning. Rather, integration takes technology out of the supplemental role (e.g. a computer in the classroom that is used as a reward or for administrative functions) and makes it integral to classroom activities (e.g. computers in the classroom that are used to meet instructional objectives). The key to this type of integration is pedagogically sound instructional design which allows instructors select technologies that support both the content and sutdent learning objectives (Fouts, 2000). Technology can be used to support student learning at all stages from lower to higher order thinking skills (LOTs to HOTs). When we use technology as a tool in support of learning objectives, already effective teaching models are reinforced and strengthened (Fouts, 2000).
As more and more instructors are integrating technologies into their curriculums in support of their teaching and learning objectives it is important to ask ‘what is the impact of technology on learning?’. The corollary to technology’s support of instruction in the classroom is technology’s support of student’s learning and achievement. Today’s students have come to expect, and in some cases demand, the integration of technology in their classrooms. Most of today’s students are younger than the PC, they place value on being constantly connected both in their social lives as well as in their education (Frand, 2000; Prensky, 2008). The millennial generation of students has come to expect technology in their education and, while expectations alone are not valid support for the value of technology integration, the research does support these expectations.
Statistics from the CEO Forum on Education and Technology and research conducted by the U.S. Department of Education both indicate that learning with technologies, such as computer toutoring programs, has a direct positive impact on measurable outcomes such as final grades and test scores (CEO Forum on Education and Technology, 2001; U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology, 2004). Technology use can also enhance the student experience improving their overall perception of both content and instruction. The use of computers in classroom instruction has been shown to significantly improve student attitude scores towards content and instruction. Aside from increasing student engagement with classroom materials, the improvement in student attitude has several beneficial side effects such as reducing student boredom levels (Cotton, 1991).Technology is a medium that our current generation of students is very familiar and comfortable with. The benefits of integrating technology into the classroom go well beyond catering to student preference. The demonstrated benefits of technology integration are far reaching, from improved grades to decreased boredom, and highly positive.
The positive impact of technology on education can be seen in today’s classrooms. Currently, there is no indication that this positive impact will be diminished with time. While it is important that we gauge impact and outcomes by taking a retrospective look at technology in education, it is also important that we continue to look forward. It is of utmost importance that we continue to prepare our students for the future; our charge is to supply our students with the digital literacy skills and digital collaboration skills that will be of utmost importance to their futures (CEO Forum on Education and Technology, 2001). In the article Turning on the lights Marc Prensky summarized this charge by stating:
“Understand where kids are going—that is, into the future—and help them get there. “Most of us prefer to walk backward into the future,” said management thinker Charles Handy, “a posture which may be uncomfortable, but which at least allows us to keep on looking at familiar things as long as we can.” Covering the material and preparing kids for the test is not preparing them for the future. To find out the skills students need, look, for example, at the work of the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, which highlights such areas as computer and technology skills, critical thinking and problem solving, teamwork and collaboration, ethics and responsibility, and global awareness.” (Prensky, 2008)
While the technology of today has changed drastically from that of the past, our past experiences can help us to move forward into the future with confidence. No longer is the education community focused on the question of 'is technology effective?’, rather the focus has changed to look at how technology can be leveraged in the classroom to support both teaching and learning. The integration of technology into the classroom has a positive impact on teaching and learning when it is integrated into the curriculum in support of instructional objectives. We must continue to integrate technology into the curriculum in meaningful ways in order to best achieve these outcomes.
CEO Forum on Education and Technology. (2001). The CEO forum school technology and readiness report: Student achievement in the 21st century No. 4)CEO Forum. Retrieved from http://www.ceoforum.org/downloads/report4.pdf
Cotton, K. (1991). Computer-assisted instruction No. 10)School Improvement Research Series. Retrieved from http://www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/5/cu10.html
Fouts, J. T. (2000). Research on computers and education: Past, present and future. Seattle, WA: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.portical.org/fouts.pdf
Frand, J. L. (2000). The information-age mindset: Changes in students and implications for higher education. Educause Review, 35(5), 15-24. Retrieved from http://connect.educause.edu/Library/EDUCAUSE+Review/TheInformationAgeMindsetC/40216
Prensky, M. (2008). Turning on the lights. Educational Leadership, 65(6), 40-45. http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/mar08/vol65/num06/Turning_On_the_Lights.aspx
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology. (2004). Toward a new golden age in american education: How the internet, the law and today’s students are revolutionizing expectations. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/plan/2004/plan.pdf
Great information. I especially like the statement, "most of us prefer to walk backwards into the future." Technology can be an empowering tool. Students feel empowered and teachers feel empowered. Yet sometimes it is more difficult and time consuming to prepare a lesson using technology, especially in the beginning. So we, as teachers, chose to forego the inevitable and progress into the future kicking and screaming. We have to use our critical thinking skills in order to teach our students to use them.
ReplyDelete